According to the Dallas Morning News, other TreeHouse investors included Bill Robinson, executive vice president of Southlake-based Sabre; and Justin Cox, whose father, Berry Cox, was an original and longtime board member of Home Depot.

At the Dallas store opening, Ballard talked about his dream of expanding the stores throughout the U.S.

“People would say, of course, you can be successful with a store like this in AUSTIN,” Ballard said chuckling. “We want to prove this is not just for special weird people. This is going to be the new normal.”

Jason Ballard talks green home improvement at TreeHouse preview in Dallas in May 2017. Photo by Andrea Ridout.

Initially, TreeHouse wowed North Texas greenies with its carefully curated showroom featuring everything from walnut shell pot scrubbers to solar panels. One of its bragging points - it was the first retailer authorized to sell the Tesla Powerwall, a home battery.

However in May, there were signs of potential strain. Ballard left the company to cofound another company called ICON, focused on 3D printing technology for homes. The Austin store closed and the headquarters moved to Dallas.

TreeHouse released a statement this week saying it had taken a “hard look at its future” and decided to “wind down operations.”

“We have made great strides towards our goals but fell short of those needed to secure future growth.”

Following the store closing announcement, many grumbled on social media that the pricing for the high-end items was its downfall.

“Great products there. It was just those prices....,” said Jason Winningham, aka the Green Tip Guy.

No word yet on how long the stores will stay open or if sales are planned.

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About GreenSource DFW

Green Source DFW is an education project of the Memnosyne Institute. It's mission is to bring together environmental groups, green businesses and the Dallas-Fort Worth community to grow the green movement in North Texas.

Memnosyne Institute

The mission of the Memnosyne Institute is to help the diverse people of the world consciously encourage an evolution for themselves and for future generations by providing humanity with the means to encourage positive, peaceful global collaboration in seven main areas of knowledge.